4. Pretending you know what you're doing is almost the same as knowing what you are doing, so just accept that you know what you're doing even if you don't and do it.

Point 4 is an essential truth to life, the manifold layers of which a Buddhist could meditate upon for many, many years. Not long ago, I had the first stage of that realization: my parents didn't know what the hell they were doing any more than I do now, and they did fine. Shortly thereafter came the second stage of that realization: none of my coworkers know what they hell they are doing any more than I do, and THEY are doing fine. Then, a couple of months ago, I hit another level of that realization: none of YOU know what the hell you're doing any more than I do, and you're still making some pretty amazing stuff.

Each of those realizations has carried with it an essential release of a level of fear of failure. While it's easy to SAY that failure is good and teaches lessons, every time I realize that someone I am impressed by wasn't any more well-equipped than I am, it helps me be a bit less afraid to do.

1. There are three states of being. Not knowing, action and completion.

three states of action maybe, being would only be relative to a status.

2. Accept that everything is a draft. It helps to get it done. 3. There is no editing stage.

draft IS editing.

4. Pretending you know what you're doing is almost the same as knowing what you are doing, so just accept that you know what you're doing even if you don't and do it.

no. pretending you know what you're doing is a recipe for disaster. admitting when you *don't* have an *idea* how to do something, or the potential problems involved in something is critical. having confidence in your abilities to figure out wtf you are doing and fly by the seat of your pants is of the utmost importance, in that it will allow you to act without undue hesitation. confidence in skills is NOT pretending. it is knowledge, which means that you DO know what you're doing.

5. Banish procrastination. If you wait more than a week to get an idea done, abandon it.

i'll respond next week.

6. The point of being done is not to finish but to get other things done.

then you are not actually doing anything for a purpose other than to do other things. you are only keeping busy rather than achieving a goal.

7. Once you're done you can throw it away.

from a soto zen perspective of detachment, yes, however this is not entirely accurate. the experience can not be discarded, short of mind altering chemicals preventing memory implantation.

8. Laugh at perfection. It's boring and keeps you from being done.

laugh at perfection, but not because it is boring, but because it does not exist. an apt koan: if you meet the buddha on the street, kill him.

9. People without dirty hands are wrong. Doing something makes you right.

there is not necessarily a right or wrong, only opinions.

10. Failure counts as done. So do mistakes. 11. Destruction is a variant of done.

yup.

12. If you have an idea and publish it on the internet, that counts as a ghost of done.

if the point of an endeavor is to publish it on the interenet (i.e. this post) then it's done.

13. Done is the engine of more.

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where's the more manifesto? without defining more calling done the engine of it is vacant.

the whole thing sounds like the false enlightenment found, and generally later recanted by the introduction of LSD into buddhist communities in the 60's. detachment from the project after completion is critical, and in many ways crucial to actually learn from it rather than simply rehashing over and over, but can not ignore the *point* of the endeavor. if the point of an endeavor is to simply be busy, then get a rake, an sand garden, and a willow tree. if the point of an endeavor is to learn about progress, humility and patience, then get a rake, a sand garden, and a willow tree. two very different endeavors, one which can be "done" the other of which is endless.